The Emperor Protects!

In the grim darkness of the far future, there is only war...

"Thirteen Hours to Doom"

Escape the house, or drown in fire,

10

OCT/10

The abomination that had once been called ‘Nonesuch’ towered above the tiny figure of Gaius in the stygian darkness of the great hall. Lex saw the Battle-Psyker, dauntless and defiant to the very end, draw one last bead on the creature’s centre mass as it raised its limb to smite him.

Several yards to Gaius’ left, Vittorious was down – his body a blackened ruin; the remaining fleshy parts seemingly rendered to ash at the creatures deadly touch. The unconscious form of Vindex also lay nearby, Greel’s power scythe, now slick with blood, still sparking in the gloom.

This was it.

There was no escape from moments such as these. No recourse, no respite. There was but to do or die. Intelligencer Belcarius Lex had a duty: to his colleagues, to the Adeptus Arbites, to the Inquisition – and, above all else, to the God-Emperor of Mankind. A duty to defend all loyal subjects of the Emperor, and to destroy all defilers of his glorious Imperium. Were his companions not loyal? Was this beast not a defiler, most cruel? Lex had a duty.

And, as Schola-Master Langron always used to say, “Only in death, does duty end.”

The last, lonely scion of Solomon Haarlock turned to face his fate.

He had run for long enough.

Unshipping Severance from its spine sheath, Lex brought the venerable long-las up into his shoulder. He sighted, exhaled, and – muttering the catechism of accuracy under his breath – squeezed the trigger. Once.

In a tremendous explosion of tenebrous flesh, the thing that was ‘Nonesuch’ blew apart – its copper sceptre striking only stone, and rolling away into the dark.

Gobbets of matter, necrotic fluids, and super-heated steam drizzled down in the ushering silence afterward.

Duty hadn’t killed him yet.

Well done gents, once again.

One thing I’d forgotten was the new rule I’ve been waiting to implement.

When you slay, or otherwise overcome (e.g. refusing to be possessed by a daemon of Slaanesh via your willpower alone), a creature with a fear rating – you then receive it’s fear rating as negative Insanity points. Cthulhu has a similar system – regaining sanity when you dispatch or defeat unnatural agents of the Mythos.

In certain circumstances you may regain less or more insanity – if the creature was particularly potent or terrifying, or the ramifications of your failure would have been apocalyptic. And vice versa if the creature was incapacitated etc.

Please could all four of you reduce your characters’ Insanity Points totals by 4 each.

Mayhap you will be more cautious when facing the Slaugth in future, for in this instance, you barely escaped with your lives…